One Hundred Chances
by domina tempore
Summary: Random little snippets and peeks into the lives of Richard Castle and the people he knows best... based on the "lover 100" prompt list on LJ. A little bit of everything.
1. Romance

**Chapter 1** – _That "Just Friends" Business…_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Summary: In which Martha and Alexis discuss the relationship of Castle and Beckett… _

_Prompt: Romance_

_Author's Note: my prompt source is the "lover_100" prompt list on LJ…but LJ hates me so I don't write there :(. And while they are meant to be mostly romantic prompts, I have no intention of writing all of these little fics to be romantic…I'm quite frustrated with the genre, and the words on the list (for the most part) don't have to be taken strictly romantically. This one being a semi-exception. I love Castle's family…(:_

_**Disclaimer: Castle and all of its characters and plots belong to their respective owners; I only own these humble scribblings. **_

*~_~**o0o**~_~*

"It's sad, really," Martha commented to Alexis, sipping on a glass of wine. Alexis rolled her eyes.

"What is it this time, grandma?"

"It's your father, that's what!" She slammed her hand down on the table. "He has to spend all of this time crab-stepping around that lovely detective, when he should be out romancing someone, enjoying himself! It's just terrible all the time that he wastes on her."

"He has fun with Detective Beckett," Alexis reminded her gently. "And it helps him to write. He likes what he does. I'm happy that he's happy."

"Not in my day! In my day you came right out and wooed someone; you didn't waste time on all of this "just friends" business. You went in _straight_ for the kill…oh, how the world has changed since I was young." Alexis hid a smile.

"I think Dad's doing okay right now. I'm not sure that I want him involved in any more romances right now. I kind of like the fact that he and Beckett can just be friends."

"Hmph." Martha snorted. "Well I think that the boy needs romance. And when I have my way, he's going to _get_ it! Just friends in-_deed_…"

_fin._

*~_~**o0o**~_~*

_A/N: 200 words exactly. _


	2. Beauty

**Chapter 2** - _Beauty_

_Summary: In which Martha teaches the meaning of beauty…_

_Prompt: beauty_

_Author's Note: This is set somewhere towards the end of season one. Early on, Beckett struck me as the kind of person who would be uncomfortable with positive attention to herself, and so I tried to get that feeling across here. I'm not sure quite how IC she is, but I hope I did alright. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Kate sat curled up on the floor of a fancy bathroom, her knees drawn up and her face soaked with tears. From behind the door, she could heart the sound of talking and laughter and clinking glasses, but she tried to block the sound of it out of her ears. She didn't want to go back out there; she hadn't wanted to come in the first place. She didn't want to hear them talking about her or feel their disapproving stares on the back of her neck.

She heard the bathroom door open, but she kept her face hidden, her cheek pressed against her knees. She didn't care who it was; hopefully they wouldn't recognize her, but if they did, it would hardly make the night any worse. She stayed silent and waited for whoever it was to go away.

"Kate, darling, whatever is the matter?" Beckett looked up and blinked, scrubbing a hand across her cheek in an effort to conceal her tears.

"Martha…" she paused as Castle's mother put her hands on her hips, and began again. "I'm fine, nothing to worry about. Sorry to freak you out like that. Everything's good…"

"That's not what Alexis said! She came in here nearly ten minutes ago, and came running out again to tell me that you were in here weeping on the floor, just like that; and I said that if you didn't show yourself within a few minutes I was coming in after you. You've been in here far longer than even the most vain of Broadway actresses fixing her makeup. Now I'd appreciate it if you'd tell me the truth about what's bothering you; you can ask my son, I don't give up easily.

"You disappeared from that ballroom as quickly as you could when my son got up on that stage to make his speech and sing your praises." Kate opened her mouth to protest, but Martha cut her off. "What were you thinking? Some women would kill to have a man do that for her. Heck, _I'd_ practically be ready to commit murder for a chance like that – I said _practically_, dear, no need to get upset."

"You think he was "singing my praises"?" Beckett asked, ignoring the comment.

"Well if you have a better reason why a man throws a party like this to honor a pretty police detective, do share…"

"He did all of this to humiliate me!" Martha gasped. Kate nodded. "Oh yeah! He's doing all of this because he knows that I don't care about people and parties like this. He _tricked_ me into coming here; he said that it was a party for you; and now he's using the whole "honor the detective" thing to get away with it."

"That's hardly what he led me to believe he was doing tonight."

"Oh, and he tells the truth all the time, is that it?"

"Kate…"

"You know what? Forget it. Forget I said anything. I don't fit in with all of these rich, terribly attractive people anyways. I might as well just go home so that he can have all of the attention that he likes." Kate made to get up, but Martha knelt in front of her and caught her hands.

"What's this now about rich and attractive people?" she asked. "Is that what's making you uncomfortable, because you think that they care how much money you make?" Kate shrugged.

"I don't fit in here," she lowered her voice. "With people…like you."

"Nonsense!" Martha pulled her to her feet and stood her before the gilded mirror. "Please, enough of this pity party. Not everyone can make a six- to eight-figure salary like my son can; and most of these people don't. They are normal, hardworking people who appreciate what you do for them and their city.

"As to the "not beautiful" part, that is a blatant lie and you know it. I mean, honestly! I'm the best looking woman older than fifteen out there, and you even outshine me tonight, darling." She took a hand towel and gently blotted Kate's tears dry, removing tiny trails of mascara that had dripped down, as well. "Don't you ever listen to the lie that only rich people can be beautiful. Have you met my son's ex-wives? Well, be glad that you haven't. They were absolutely miserable women, and perfectly ugly because of it." She wet her hands and smoothed Kate's dark curls back into shape, then dried them and straightened the necklace that the younger woman wore. Placing her hands on Kate's shoulders, she whispered in her ear. "Listen to me, Detective Beckett. You are beautiful, the most beautiful women here. Half the women I know have all the looks and none of the right attitude. You have the _heart_, as well as the gorgeous looks, when you're not crying eye makeup all over your face. You are dressed in an incredible evening gown that would have made me jealous at your age, and you have a man out there waiting for you to come back so that he can brag about your virtue until his voice gives out.

"Now I don't care what you think that those people out there are going to think or say about you. I want you to smile and to _glide_ out of this door like you were just backstage to dress for the next scene, your head held high and your eyes shining; and I guarantee you that no one is going to even think twice about your salary." Kate took a deep breath, and Martha squeezed her shoulders gently. "Now, get out there, and dazzle my son out of words to describe you, darling. Show him what beauty really means."

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: I hesitate to ask. Thoughts? _


	3. Forgiveness

**Chapter 3** -_ Forgiveness_

_Summary: In which Castle bases his best bit of writing in months on a private moment he's afraid to put out on the page…_

_Prompt: forgiveness_

_Author's Note: A tag to "episode 1, season 2". Tiny little spoilers. I'm afraid I made Alexis a little bit too mature…it's hard to get the right levels of everything for her. But what can I say? I love the girl. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

"_Forgiveness was not something that came easily to Nikki Heat. She had been hurt so many times in her life by people that she loved, that she found it easier to avoid apologies. But something made her pause that night. Instead of dismissing him, something made her stop and listen. She realized that he was the first person in the many years of her career to even attempt to say "I'm sorry". In her business, people didn't say sorry. They made excuses, and you let things go. There was no room for sorry in detective work._

_Something about this realization that this was different touched her, touched her so much that for a moment, she was speechless. She avoided eye contact with him as he stumbled over his words, being a man himself unused to apologies; but when he said goodbye and turned away, she made a choice. That heart of ice and stone that she had spent so long carving and cultivating had cracked, and she found that in spite of everything, she could not simply let him walk away. _

"_Wait!" she called out, meeting his eyes when he turned. "I want you to stay…""_

Castle frowned, staring at the words that he had typed. It was the best scene that he had written in months; but instead of feeling pride, he found himself struggling to hit save. The readers would eat it up, seeing Nikki start to soften after playing her off as the tough, injured cop. But he had taken this scene straight out of his own life. And as unexpected as it seemed, he felt guilty to take a moment that had been so personal between the both of them and turn it into pulp fiction.

"I can't do it…" he muttered to himself, highlighting the paragraphs and preparing to delete them.

"Don't erase it."

"Ah!" he jumped, and turned around to see Alexis standing behind him, reading over his shoulder. "Alex, since when did you get so quiet? You scared me half to death!"

"Sorry." She rubbed his shoulder gently. "Why were you going to get rid of this?"

"I…I don't really like it." Alexis raised an eyebrow.

"Dad, come on. This is the best scene that you've written in months. You're inspired again. You've always told me that when you get inspired, that you have to run with it. Follow your dreams and all that."

"Well, yeah…"

"Dad, this is good stuff. Don't get rid of it."

"Alexis…"

"Please." Castle sighed. 

"Alright, you know how I always tell you that inspiration comes from real life? Well, this was one of those scenes that was kind of similar to real life." 

"Like how similar?"

"Like…it happened to me tonight…"

"When you went to talk to Detective Beckett?"

"…Yeah. So it's kind of a personal thing for me. I'm not quite sure that I want the whole world to read about our moment. And I'm _really_ not sure that I want Beckett to see my thoughts on her point of view."

"Huh." Alexis was quiet for a minute, and Castle kept his mouth shut, waiting her out. "I still thing you should keep it," she said finally.

"But honey, why? You know, she's threatened to break both my arms before." Alexis laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Somehow I think that the part about you stumbling over your words is going to balance out the "heart of ice and stone" bit," she assured him. "And I'm not kidding, Dad, this is _really_ good. People are going to be able to relate to Nikki in this scene. You won't just entertain your readers, you're going to touch them. And that's what a truly great writer does." Castle wrapped his daughter up in a hug.

"How did you get so smart and mature?" he asked into her hair.

"I learned from the best," she said, squeezing him a little bit tighter. She kissed his cheek. "Goodnight, Dad."

"Goodnight sweetheart." He watched her leave, a small smile on his lips. Then with a sigh, he turned back to his computer, and stared again. His hands hovered over the keyboard for a minute while he battled with his decision, but at last he reached out and clicked. A soft bleep told him that the document had saved.

A few final keystrokes, and he had shut off his computer, and headed off to bed.

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: I loved the scene at the end when Alexis complains about guys never saying sorry, and it made Castle go back and stutter out an apology. It's moments like those that you start to see the shaping of a good character. And I'm a sucker for character development…_

…_and episode tags. (:_


	4. Regret

**Chapter 4** - _Regret_

_Summary: In which there is trouble and loss that might have been avoided if everyone had just done what they were supposed to…_

…_AU, death!fic…_

_Prompt: regret_

_Author's Note: This one threw me off a little bit; I wasn't sure how to make it work, and in the end, I went a good bit darker than I originally intended…but I honestly don't think that I could have ended this one any other way._

_Also, I'm sorry that it's been so terribly long since I last posted. I'm in the middle of NaNoWriMo (look it up! It's EPIC), so for the month of November I'll not be writing much else other than my novel. At least until I hit 50,000 words. Sorry for the inconvenience; but I promise that I have more Castle stuff waiting in notebooks to be typed up come December first! :D_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

As soon as Beckett turned and saw him coming, she knew that it was over. Once again, he had disobeyed for, and the sudden realization that they were all going to pay for it chilled her blood.

"Castle, get back to the car!" she shouted at him. "I wasn't kidding when I told you to stay back; I don't want you blown to bits. The paperwork can get real messy."

"I'm not coming any closer," he promised. "I just want to see close up how you guys handle stuff like this. Where is bomb squad, anyways?"

"They're on their way; but we were the only people on the force in the area."

"Still, isn't this something that we should really leave to them? The tip said that we would have, like, a half an hour or something."

"We're not going to disarm the bomb, idiot; we're going to check the area out and keep everyone at a safe distance until our people get here to take care of it. And _you_ are turning around and walking back to the car. Now."

"You always make me sit in the car; where's the fun in that?"

"This is serious, Castle! Turn your butt around and get it back into that car, or I swear – "

"Beckett, this thing's gonna blow!" Esposito shouted, sprinting away. While Kate had been distracted by Castle, they'd gotten close enough that he could read the digital countdown clock on its surface. It read three seconds.

"Richard, run!" Kate was already in motion, bolting towards the author – and beyond him the car – but her steps faltered, and she felt her body hit the ground. All the air was crushed from her lungs, and she had half a second to regret all of the things that she had never said to Castle, before a deafening explosion shattered her eardrums and a wave of fire and shrapnel burned across her back.

Blackness covered her world.

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

There were not many things that Richard Castle regretted. Sure, there were a few lines that he wished he hadn't written – or wished he had – and he would have liked for Alexis to have a mother around, and preferred that his own mother had had her own place to live for a while. But for the most part, those were things that could still be dealt with, remedied. It would be much harder to undo the fact that he was being wheeled towards the surgery floor of the hospital because ,once again, he had failed to follow Beckett's orders to stay put.

It would all have been so simple, too. Stay in the car until they'd checked out the threat, and get the point of view of an innocent bystander to write into his newest book. But bystanding had never been good enough for him; no, Castle liked to be where the action was. Besides, the tip had only said that there _might_ be a bomb; how was he supposed to know that it was actually going to go off? Supposedly there had been another half hour on it at least.

_It really isn't fair_, he thought as the anesthesiologist slid a needle into his arm. _Why do I always have to sneak into Beckett's really interesting…_ He was unable to finish the sentence as the thought of Beckett jumped suddenly to the forefront of his hazy mind and forced his eyes to open.

"Nurse?" he mumbled to the woman standing by the operating table wearing pink scrubs. Around him, people were busy cutting off his clothes so that they could get to the wound. "Nurse, are Beckett and Esposito okay?"

"What's that?"

"The detectives…" Castle could feel the medicine taking effect; he was losing consciousness. Forcing his mind back into focus, he continued. "They were closer to the bomb than I was."

"Sir, I need you to stop fighting the sleep, okay?" the nurse asked him. "You have to be unconscious before they begin operating on you; and you need the operation. Please just relax."

"But my friends…"

"Sir, I promise you that we are doing everything we can for your friends. Now please calm down and let the medicine work." Castle started to obey.

"Does Alexis know?" he asked suddenly, his eyes popping opened again. The nurse laid a hand on his forehead.

"Calm down and go to sleep," she repeated, her voice firm but gentle. "Everything is going to be alright."

"Where was bomb squad during this whole thing, anyways?" Castle mumbled as the anesthesia finally won the battle. He kept fading. "They should have been there first…"

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Ryan had paced the hospital waiting room so many times that the receptionist had gotten worried. She'd been nearly ready to call security on him before he showed his badge to shut her up. He couldn't sit down, couldn't force himself to be still while his friend's lives were in jeopardy on the operating table.

He'd rushed into the hospital as soon as he'd heard what happened, bailing out on a date with such speed that he'd left the woman speechless. He regretted now that he hadn't given her an explanation, but that didn't matter. It was nothing compared to the fact that he had begged Esposito to cover for him so that he could go on the date, and he'd ended up in surgery. The fact that his date didn't work out would hardly count for anything if his friends died. Especially Esposito. If he died, it was going to be because of Ryan.

"Detective Ryan?" He completed his circuit and turned around to see Castle's daughter Alexis standing there, her eyes terrified and full of tears but her emotions fully under control. It baffled him that he was having more trouble staying calm in this crisis than his friend's sheltered teenage daughter.

"Alexis, how's your grandmother?" When he'd called to let Castle's family know what was going on, Martha had gone into hysterics.

"She's outside with a couple of EMT's; they're trying to calm her down. She tried to come into the building ranting and screaming and demanding to see Dad." Alexis's voice shook. "Do they know anything yet?" Ryan shook his head

"No. All that anyone will tell me is that they're in surgery, critically injured."

"But just because they're critical doesn't mean it's fatal, right?" Alexis asked hopefully. "I mean, in Dad's books, critically injured characters end up healing all the time. Just because he's hurt doesn't mean that my dad is going to…going to…" Her tears spilled over, and she couldn't continue. Surprised and moved, Ryan reached out and wrapped her into a hug, and she buried her face in his chest, sobbing. He could feel his own tears starting to drip as well.

"No it doesn't," he managed. "And according to a couple of the eyewitnesses, your father wasn't as close to the blast as the other two. I'd say that it's a pretty good bet he's going to make it." His voice caught, and he stopped talking. No need for the kid to know how torn up he was about his team between life and death.

Vaguely in the background of hospital noise, Ryan heard the waiting room doors swish opened and closed. A moment later, an distinctive female voice boomed through the room.

"There you are!" He looked up and released Alexis as her grandmother swept over to her and gathered her in a hug of her own. "Oh my word, you scared me to death! It's bad enough that your father is in the hospital and I can't see him; but to lose you here, too, in the same hour? I'll die of worry before your father ever dies in a hospital. Come on, dear, let's go see if the staff here has any news yet." With barely a glance at Ryan, she led her granddaughter off, and left him alone to worry.

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Castle stood, silently and painfully, beside his mother and his daughter at the gravesite. All around them were other people who had known the deceased; police officers, detectives, the chief, her father, and a surprising number of the people she had served in her investigations over the years. Esposito was attending in a wheelchair. Many people were crying. But they watched in absolute silence has her dark, polished wooden casket was lowered into the ground; and one by one, they passed by to pay their respects, and drop a flower and a handful of dirt over the casket.

Throughout the funeral, Castle had listened to people talk about heaven, and freedom from pain. She was "in a better place", and she could see her mother again; and while those were all well and good and he didn't doubt them, he wondered if she had left the world with any regrets. He wondered if she had left the world wishing that she could have just saved one more person, solved one more case; seen someone that she loved one last time.

He would never know. But he knew that he was going to live with the guilt of Kate Beckett's death forever.

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: This is NOT where I meant to go with this fic when I started writing it! I promise that the next one will be much lighter. (:0 (I've got that one typed up, so you may get it sooner than Dec. 1__st__ ;).)_


	5. Discovery

**Chapter 5** -_ Discovery_

_Summary: In which Beckett attempts revenge against Castle for constantly rooting through and stealing things from her desk. _

_Prompt: discovery_

_Author's Note: Lighter and happier, as promised! :D I wouldn't say that this one is necessarily my favorite; it doesn't flow like Beauty and some of the others; but I think I'll keep it…*wink*_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Kate Beckett found herself alone, for the first time, in Castle's house. Martha was out, Alexis was still at school, and when she'd gotten to their home, she'd found the door unlocked and a note telling her to come right in. She had gone as far as the kitchen, but the author hadn't come out to greet her yet.

"Idiot," she muttered to herself, unwilling to walk any farther into the apartment without permission. "Of course he would have you rush over here and not even be home yet." And, of course, she was just enough of a fan of his to fall for it. "Though in my defense, the man can be convincing."

She kept her awkward stance in the kitchen for a few more moments, but the man didn't walk in the door or come down the stairs. It figured, of course; but it still irritated her. And then she noticed his office.

A smirk twisted her lips. Down at the station, it was one of Castle's favorite pastimes to rifle through (and steal things from) her desk on a regular basis; it seemed like almost a game to him. And here she was, alone in his house with no witnesses, with the perfect opportunity to get back at him for it. She didn't imagine that he would be very happy if he came home to find his entire desk rearranged and some of his books out of order on the shelves. If all her threats hadn't worked, then maybe retaliation would convince him that she meant business.

"Besides," she reminded herself, when a small stab of guilt stopped her halfway across the room to the office door, "it's not as if you're breaking and entering so you can steal something; he invited you. The note on the door said to make yourself at home." Feeling more justified, she took a deep breath and entered the office.

True to form, three of the four walls were lined with well-stocked bookshelves, and the last was covered in large, framed copies of his book covers. She rolled her eyes. Narcissist.

The whole room was pretty much what she had come to expect from him. The pictures, the bookshelves, the expensive desk and super-comfy chair, the dead body on the floor, the top-of-the-line computer…

Kate stopped as her brain hit rewind, then spun to fully face the problem. Dead body?

It was crumpled up in the corner of the office, one arm thrown over half of its face and bloody knife-hilt sprouting out of the chest. She dropped to her knees beside it.

"Oh no…" Her pulse beat in her ears as she examined the body. She didn't dare touch it, but it was not difficult to recognize what she could see of the features as Castle. "Oh no!" Mentally kicking herself, she scooted back a little bit from the body and tugged her phone out of her pocket. She dialed the chief. How was she ever going to explain this to him? To Alexis?

He picked up on the second ring.

"Montgomery here."

"Chief, it's Beckett. I'm – "

"Well, Detective Beckett! This is unexpected. Aren't you supposed to be enjoying your day off?"

"Chief, I'm at Castle's house. He's – "

"Spending time together off-duty now, huh? Does this mean that you're finally warming up to him?"

"Would you shut up for two seconds? She's trying to tell you that I've been stabbed!" Kate jumped to her feet and away as Castle sat up and stretched. "Boy, you'd think that he'd pay attention when you were trying to report a murder, huh?" Kate gasped, fury rising in her chest as she realized what had happened. She heard laughter on the other end of the phone, and she slammed it shut viciously.

"Gotcha!" Castle laughed, pulling the knife off of his chest and shaking out the collapsible blade. "Good one, wasn't it? I was so glad when the chief told me he'd play along; I've been planning this one for almost a month! Oh, gosh, I wish you could have seen your face…!" Kate snorted.

"My face?" she repeated. "My _face_? Castle, of all the idiot stunts – "

"I really had you fooled, didn't I? I scared you! But come on, it's April Fools! You can appreciate a good joke, right?"

"Castle, this isn't funny. I thought you were dead!"

"I thought you always wanted me dead." He shrugged innocently. "I figured, "What the heck?" Give the lady what she wants, right?"

"Why would I want you dead?" Kate asked, thrown off by the statement. Castle pointed at her.

"Aha! So you admit that you have feelings for me!"

"I – " Beckett stopped, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. She opened her eyes and started again. "Castle, run."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Run."

"Oh, come on, now Kate - !" He started to reach out towards her.

"I changed my mind, I want you dead. Now get out of my sight before I get my gun."

"You know we could have been great together…" Kate took one step, and Castle took the hint. 

"Alright, fine!" He bolted for the door. "You can just let yourself out whenever!"

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: Thoughts? (:0 NaNoWriMo is still eating my life, so I don't think I'll be able to post any more until I hit 50k words there…but come December, Castle will be back! :D_


	6. First Meeting

**Chapter 6** -_ First Meeting_

_Summary: In which young Kate Beckett meets her favorite author for the first time…tiny little spoilers for "A Death in the Family"._

_Prompt: First Meeting_

_Author's Note: I really liked this prompt. In "A Death in the Family", I believe, there's a scene with Beckett and that FBI guy she used to date, and he mentions that Castle's books helped her get through her mother's death and that she once stood in a signing line to get his autograph. I liked the thought of that, so I decided to play with a young Kate and the "new writer" Castle, in such a way that he might not have recognized her years later…if that makes any sense._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Kate Beckett stood in line, shifting from foot to foot and gripping a hardcover novel in her shaking hands. She had been waiting for this book signing for weeks, and had agonized over the decision of what book to bring. She owned all three that he had written so far, and she loved them all; it was an impossible choice. But it had been made very clear from the beginning that he would only be signing one book per person. Finally, she had decided on the first book in the series. It was her favorite, a book that had shocked her and kept her guessing on every page. And it had comforted her through some of the hardest times of her life; it had kept her going after her mother's recent death.

Pushing the thoughts of that awful night out of her mind, Kate stepped forward with the line, and realized with a start that she was only one person away from the table; she was close enough that she could practically see what he was writing.

She realized that her palms were sweating, and she wiped them on the legs of her jeans as she ran through the whole scenario in her mind. So far everything was just how she had imagined it would be going to meet Richard Castle. Next, she would step up to the table and hand him her book, and if all went the way that she had imagined, he would look up at her and give her that fabled charming smile, and he would ask her if she wouldn't mind being the inspiration for the heroine in his next book…

"Mr. Castle will be leaving now." What? "I'm sorry, but Mr. Castle has some very pressing business elsewhere." A tall, blonde woman who had been standing by the table stepped forward and started shooing the line back towards the door of the bookstore. "Thank you all very much for coming, and be sure to pick up a copy of the next Derrick Storm book on your way out." No! This wasn't fair; she had waited for two whole hours in that line! They couldn't kick everyone out now.

"Now, come on, dear." Kate looked up when she heard Castle's voice. "No one is going to care if I'm a few minutes late for a poker game; it's not for another hour anyways. Besides, the game is at my house!"

"But darling, you promised," the woman gritted through a forced smile. The crowd was no longer obeying her; when the author had spoken, they all stopped what they were doing and listened, waiting on his every word.

"Honey, some of these people have been here since before we even arrived. This kid, and that man," he pointed. "And this young lady up front." Kate gasped. Was he actually looking at her? "Get out of the way, please, so I can sign their books." He smiled sweetly at her scandalized expression.

"But Richard – "

"I'm going to finish signing," he said firmly, that smile never wavering.

With a muffled grunt of anger, the blonde stepped aside and motioned Kate forward.

"Come on, kid. We don't have all day!" A little dazed, Kate stumbled up to the table and handed her book to Richard Castle. She felt a little giddy just thinking the words.

"And who should I make this out to?" he asked. It took her a moment to realize that he was actually talking to _her_.

"What?"

"Who should I make the autograph out to? I've got to write something more than "Best Wishes, RC." How impersonal is that to write in a book?"

"Oh, right!" Kate blushed. "Make it out to Kate Be – "

"Just sign the stupid thing, Richard!" His angry assistant yelled, cutting Kate off. He rolled his eyes at her.

"To "Kate B." then, how about that?" he said, scribbling something down in the book. As soon as he lifted the pen away, the blonde woman snatched the book off of the table and shoved it back into Kate's hands, then shoved her on. She glanced back hopefully.

"Hey, good luck out there!" Castle called after her, ignoring his pushy assistant's annoyance. Then, to Kate's surprise, he smiled straight at her, and winked.

Kate allowed herself to be pulled along by the traffic out of the bookstore, grinning so wide that it made her cheeks sore. But it wasn't until she was seated on the bus and heading home that she opened the book to see what he had written.

_To Kate B., Good Luck. _

_I can see it in your face that one day,_

_you're going to Inspire people._

_All the best,_

_-Richard Castle_

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: Really, what a twist would this have been? ;)_

_I'll have the next one up once I get it typed out.(:_


	7. Hardest Truth

**7. Castle:** _Hardest Truth_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Prompt: hardest truth_

_Summary: In which Beckett admits that she has not yet forgiven Castle for what he did…Spoilers for "A Death in the Family". Sort of AU…_

_Author's Note: Finally back to posting after NaNoWriMo! So sorry it's taken me this long to get back in gear. Hopefully I'll be more consistent with my posting now!_

_This one is probably my least favorite out of all the ones I've written yet. I had been off the show for a few days when I wrote it, and it just wasn't fresh in my mind…but again, my goal is to post every fic I write for the prompts from that list…stupid goals…_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Richard opened his mouth to speak.

"Get out of here, Castle," Beckett said flatly, not even bothering to look up from her paperwork. He sighed.

"Kate, come on. Please don't shut me out like this. We've been doing so good lately!"

"And then you pulled one of your idiot stunts and almost got the both of us killed." Castle shrugged.

"We would only have been a little dead," he mumbled, looking away. Beckett slammed her pen down and flattened her hands on the desk, her eyes rolling.

"Look, Castle, I know that this is all just fun and games for you; but that's not what it's like in the real world. Mistakes have consequences here, and sometimes a mistake can cost you your life."

"But you and I, we've always got each other's backs, right?" Beckett sighed.

"To be honest, Castle? Sometimes I want to just step aside and let it hit you." She shoved back her chair and stood. "Sometimes I think it would be easier if you just died, and I didn't have to deal with you anymore." She turned quickly, before he could make one of his hurt, innocent faces, and stalked away.

"What did I do to you, Kate?" he demanded as he stepped forward, refusing her retreat. "I've never done anything intentionally to hurt you; but clearly there's something that bothers you, all the same. So tell me what I have ever done to make you this mad at me?"

"You liked to me!" She spun around to face him. "You did exactly what I told you not to do; the one thing that I _begged_ you not to look into, and you did it! You treated my mother's case like just another bit of research for your books, and then you lied about it, but still had the audacity to bring everything back up for me later when it was convenient for you." Richard stared at her, open-mouthed.

"That's what you're angry about? Still? Kate, I thought that we had worked through this…" He crossed the short space between them. "I thought that you forgave me."

"Yeah, so did I," Kate shrugged off his touch. "But then every time I think about it, the anger hits me again, and I remember; sometimes I still hate you for it, Castle." Castle sighed, his eyes narrowing a little bit and starting to look glassy. He started to reach out to touch her shoulder, but then thought the better of it and pulled his hand back.

"So that's the truth of it, then?" he asked softly. "You're still angry about me looking into your mother's case?" Beckett nodded.

"Yes."

"Alright, then." Castle sighed, and he seemed to droop, to resign to his fate. "I do hope that you'll eventually forgive, me though, Kate. What I did was wrong, yes, and I'm sorry. But honestly I did it because I thought that that was what you would have wanted, to know what happened. To know the truth."

"Excuses," Beckett muttered, pushing past him to get back to her desk. "I don't buy it anymore, Castle. You're too good at spinning up stories."

_fin._

_A/N: Definitely my least favorite, and very un-cannon of me. The next one will be better-ish._


	8. Resolutions

**8. Castle:** _Resolution_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Summary: In which Castle and Beckett discuss New Years Resolutions… For Nikki Heat, of course. _

_Prompt: Resolutions_

_Author's Note: Hm…so this one is a little bit better. It definitely felt much more natural to me than "Hardest Truth". And because you've all been so terribly patient with me through NaNoWriMo and beyond, you lovelies get two little fics tonight while I type up the rest (:_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Castle leaned back against a pillar and raised a glass of champagne to his lips, taking stock of the crowd. People were mingling in the large hall, talking, laughing, drinking, and admiring the shiny gold decorations that Martha had chosen. They were admiring Martha too, he noticed, watching her put herself on display like the actress that she was. Outside large, elaborate windows, there was an excellent view of the New Years Even ball drop.

As usual, it was an extraordinary party, and he was sure that the press was going to eat it up. Which meant his books were going to get good press. Not that it was necessary as a selling point – he'd never had better sales – but it was always a nice little angle.

Yes, it was a wonderful way to end the year.

He was startled out of his thoughts by soft footsteps approaching.

"Late to your own party, huh?" Beckett asked, coming up beside him and following his gaze around the room. Castle glanced at her.

"I had a speech to make at the ceremony across town!" he defended himself. "It took me forever to get back here; for a while I wasn't sure that I was going to make it!"

"Mhm. So why aren't you mingling with your guests before the New Year?"

Castle shrugged, and returned to watching the crowd. "Nah, I still have a few minutes before my New Year speech; I'm taking a couple of minutes back here to think." Beckett took a sip of champagne before she replied to that.

"What have you been thinking about?" she asked softly. Castle glanced at her again, surprised; she had sounded very serious.

"About the holiday," he answered with forced levity. "New Year, new beginnings, resolutions…"

"You make New Years resolutions?"

"Sometimes. But I was thinking more about Nikki Heat's new resolutions." Kate rolled her eyes.

"Ah, right, of course," she sighed.

Castle laughed. "What? Is there some rule that says famous, sexy fictional detectives can't have hopes and dreams, too?"

"Oh, alright, fine. What are Nikki Heat's New Years resolutions?"

"Well, I didn't say that they were necessarily New years resolutions…" Kate raised an eyebrow "…kidding! I'm just kidding. Gosh, Nikki Heat's resolutions…" He took a deep breath. "Wow…" To buy himself time, he drained his glass. "I think that Nikki's resolution is going to be,,,:

"Just spit it out, Castle," Kate urged.d

"…To do the thing that she's most afraid of; and not look back. Not regret." Kate narrowed her eyes in scrutiny of him.

"Are you drunk?" she asked suddenly. Castle coughed.

"What? No!" He looked at the empty champagne glass in his hand. "Well…maybe a little…?"

"Ah, then that explains some things."

"Oh, come on! Don't say it like that; I just drained a glass of champagne! You've got to give me some credit for being lucid even _this _long!" Smiling and nodding, Kate patted his shoulder. 

"Happy New Year, Castle," she said fondly. Then she walked away.

_fin. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: I like this one a little bit better, reading it again. Still not my favorite, but it was fun :). _


	9. Anything

**9. Castle:**_ Anything_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Summary: In which someone gets the drop on Nikki Heat…_

_Prompt: Anything_

_Author's Note: This one was interesting to write. I'm not as comfortable with Nikki as I am with regular Castle characters…I've yet to read "Heat Wave", haha. _

_One thing about writing Nikki Heat; since she is Castle's fictional character, when I write her, I treat the text as if I were quoting it; meaning that I always italicize "Nikki Heat" scenes._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_She stood there, waiting, as the gun tickled the back of her neck. While she was able to keep her face impassive on the outside, inside she was cringing with shame. She had been shown a trap and walked right into it, willingly. And that was a mistake Nikki could not take lightly. Mistakes like that often cost you your life. _

_Nikki could hear the heavy, fevered breathing behind her head. But with that gun against her neck there was no way that she could turn to see his face. In spite of the direness of her situation, it irked her to no end. If he was going to shoot her at the very least he could let her know who he was though. The first rule in her strict code of honor forbid shooting anyone in the back. You used a taser from behind if you had to; but you never kill someone from behind. She certainly didn't want to die being shot in the back. _

"_So, Miss Heat," her captor hissed, "we meet again. I must say it is a pleasure." _

"_I wish I could say the same; but you'll need to re-introduce yourself, first. It just slipped my mind exactly who you are and where we last met." The man gave a throaty laugh which made Nikki shiver. She knew that she would never forget that sound._

"_And give you a name to work with? No, Miss Heat. No names for you to take back to your fancy computer programs so you can learn every detail of my life. Where's the fun in that?_

"_Now I want you to listen carefully; I have a message that I want you to take back and tell your friends, okay? Tell them to stay out of my business! The petty street murders you've been investigating are nothing compared to what's coming next if you don't back off. And tell your reporter friend, Rook, that he's dead meat." _

"_What do you want with Rook? He isn't even involved in the street murder cases." It was a lie, but it came without effort when she imagined the irritating but fatally attractive reporter shot to death, sprawled on the floor in a pool of his own blood. It wasn't a pretty thought._

"_Just pass along the message."_

"_Look, I'll do anything you want; just don't hurt him, okay?" No answer. "Okay?" Still nothing. Confused, with the realization that she no longer felt cold steel against her neck, Nikki took a risk and whirled around, reaching for her own weapon. She gasped. The dirty alley behind her was absolutely empty. _

_Breathing hard, Nikki scanned the area around her, but the man was gone. She was alone in the silent street._

_fin. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: Because this was a Nikki scene instead of a Castle scene, I tried to write it in a little bit of a different style than normal to try and convey that…_


	10. Home

**10. Castle:** _Home_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Summary: In which Castle comes home to his family after a particularly grueling case…_

_Prompt: Home_

_Author's Note: I really like this one. I like how it feels for me; something comfortable and warm and showing daddy!Castle. I want your thoughts on this one ;). _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Castle rushed up to his apartment as fast as he could, his keys jingling in his pocket and his breath coming in short gasps. He fumbled with the lock on his door, nearly breaking the key before he finally made it turn and burst inside.

"Dad?" His eyes flickered over to the kitchen, where Alexis and Martha were taking cookies off of baking sheets. His daughter looked concerned. "Are you okay?" She wiped her hands on a towel before she walked over to him. Castle cleared his throat and tried to relax as he hugged her.

"Well, actually, I smelled your…" he glanced into the kitchen, "…chocolate chip cookies from _all_ the way over at the police station, and I got him as fast as I could so I could taste them before you two cookie monsters devoured them all." Alexis pulled back and looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Really, Dad? I'm fifteen, come on." Rick sighed.

"Alright fine, you got me. Your grandmother called and told me about the cookies."

Alexis smacked him lightly in the arm. "Dad!"

"Well I'm sorry, sweetie! Maybe I just wanted to get home and be with my lovely family, did you ever think of that?" He hugged her shoulders. "Besides, your grandmother really did tell me about the cookies."

"That's hardly the kind of thing to send you into a panic like that, though," Martha pointed out as she finished off a gooey cookie.

"Hey, don't be so sure. Cookies and I have a very deep, very passionate long-term relationship. I might even ask them to marry me."

"You know, Richard, sometimes you can be an absolute idiot. So why don't you come sit down? You can explain everything to us over a nice big glass of scotch."

"But Mother, you know that I prefer milk with my cookies. Besides, little ears hear when you talk about alcohol." He stroked Alexis's hair while making puppy eyes at his mother. Alexis rolled her eyes when Martha waved a careless hand.

"Oh, whatever. Just tell me what's got you so wild and full of lies tonight?" Castle sat down on a stool next to his daughter.

"While I don't see how what you've described is any different from a normal day for me, would you be satisfied if I said that I finally found a murder a bit too gruesome for words?"

"Like what?" Martha asked, leaning forward.

"Mother, do the words "too _gruesome_ for words" mean _anything_ to you?"

"Dad, it's alright," Alexis assured him, patting his shoulder. "You don't have to tell us."

Martha rolled her eyes. "Speak for yourself, kiddo."

"After dealing with that case today, it just made me feel a little bit more excited to get home than usual. That's _all_." He shot his mother a look as she opened her mouth to speak. With a huff, she took a sip of wine instead. "I like coming home to my family all safe and sound. I love you girls." He hugged Alexis. "Now, is the Inquisition over? Arguing while I eat gives me indigestion." Alexis shrugged. With a wink, they both turned expectant glares across the counter at Martha. With a long-suffering sigh, she gave in.

"Alright, fine, I'll leave you alone for now. But don't think I won't get to the bottom of this, Richard! I'm sure that your pretty detective will be able to give me _some _indication of what went on today."

"Mother, if you even so much as _think_ about harassing Kate for details of the case today, I _will_ kick you out," Castle warned through a mouthful of chocolaty bliss.

"Oh, you wouldn't dare; think of the publicity you would get! I can see the headlines now; "Famous Author Rick Castle Outs Own Mother"; "Broadway Beauty Left Abandoned on the Streets by Her Son"; "I Won't Kill You, But I'll Kick You Out: Richard Castle's Dark Side"…"

"Yeah, you know, that first one wasn't technically correct. When you use "out" that way…"

"Oh, so now you're going to insult the way I speak? That'll be another angle to add to the whole bad publicity thing."

"I will only insult you when you speak wrong," he promised. "And I'm pretty sure I heard somewhere once that the only _bad_ publicity is _no_ publicity…"

"Yeah, that was on "Scout's Safari" when I was twelve, Dad. Thought that was a good show."

"Yeah." Rick nodded thoughtfully.

Martha looked scandalized. "Richard Alexander Castle – "

"Hey!" Alexis interrupted quickly, turning a glare on each of them in turn to keep them silent. She started with her grandmother. "You, are overacting; you might want to tone it down a bit before your audition on Friday; I know you'll do great, but this seems a bit much. And you," she pointed at her father, "need to stop threatening to kick her out. You're causing trouble, you know."

Rick gave his daughter a tentative smile. "But I do it out of love," he quipped.

"But you're both driving _me_ crazy; some of us have actually matured past eleven now."

"And some of us just hide it better." He winked, and her serious face cracked to reveal an amused grin.

"Clearly," Martha muttered, biting into another cookie. Castle opened his mouth.

"Ah!" Alexis raised a warning finger and an eyebrow at him. With a reluctant sigh he closed his mouth again. She smiled.

"Good. Now that that's over with, I guess it's time for bet…"

"Oh, no you don't!" Castle insisted, hopping off the stool. "Not tonight; it's movie night."

"But Dad, it's only Wednesday; I have school tomorrow."

He nodded. "I know. And it is _also_ father/daughter movie night; what do you want to watch?" Alexis hesitated. "Oh, go pick something, anything. I'll make the popcorn."

"Deal."

Castle watched her run off with a smile. With all the crime and horror he saw and wrote about every day, one of the best things in his life was to be happy with his family. To be home.

Martha looked at him and smiled, their argument already forgotten.

"I know that look," she said. "What is my son thinking about now?" Coming out of his reverie, Rick shrugged.

"Just that I love my daughter," he said, "and that it's good to be home."

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*


	11. Intimacy

**11. Castle:** _Intimacy_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Summary: In which Castle and Beckett are trapped and dying, and reveal their feelings for each other…_

_Prompt: Intimacy_

_Author's Note: Merry Christmas! New chappie for you today. :)_

_This one was an interesting project. And for once, it's actually sort of romantic…well, as romantic as verge-of-death situations can be. If it seems slightly disjointed, I think it took me two days and quite a few stops to finish. But I think I did okay. I like this one. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Castle sat on the floor, his back against the rough wall. In his arms, Kate Beckett whimpered and bled – two things that were completely uncharacteristic of her. The explosion that had trapped them in the building had also pelted them with debris and she'd been the unlucky one who had been standing near a window when it happened; a lot of that window was now imbedded into her flesh. She was probably in agony, trying not to scream in pain; she needed medical attention. But Rick was hurt too, and they were trapped. There was nothing he could do.

"This was really stupid," Kate said after a while, the words choked out through her pain. "We were set up so clearly a blind man would have seen it coming, and we waltz right into it anyways. And he got us." Encouraged by the fact that she could talk, Castle tried to make light of their plight.

"The half-collapsing ceiling was an unexpected touch, though," he joked weakly. "Something I'll have to think about for Nikki Heat." Beckett rasped out a laugh.

"I still think that sounds like a stripper name, Nikki Heat," she informed him. Castle nodded, smiling fondly.

"Yeah, it really does," he sighed. They both fell silent for a while. Absently, Castle started rubbing the less-injured of Kate's shoulders with slow, gentle strokes. He felt her sigh, and her weight grew a little heavier on him. She had fallen asleep. He wasn't sure if it was dangerous for her to be sleeping right now in her condition, but she had been running herself ragged on this case, and he didn't think he could wake her.

For a while, Rick became agitated. He had already explored the whole room directly after half the building had collapsed, and there was nothing there. No way out. But all the same, being forced to sit there holding her while she slept and not even attempting to find an escape was frustrating.

Kate mumbled something quietly, making him attentive to her once again.

"What was that?"

"I said I like Nikki," she murmured sleepily, pressing a little harder against him. "You really got me down better than I thought you would."

"You told me when you read it that she was a poor copy of you!"

"Yeah, I lied about that," she admitted. "Didn't want you to know that I was a fan…"

"But I love fans."

"Exactly," Beckett whispered. Castle frowned.

"The fact that you're telling me all this makes me think I didn't have your character down all that well after all. Nikki Heat would never admit these things."

"But a dying Kate Beckett would."

Castle gulped. "Kate, you're not going to die!" He thought he was pretty expert on the subject of wounds and death; and while Beckett's injuries looked very painful, he hardly thought she was going to die from them. At least he really _hoped_ that she wasn't…

Kate was shaking her head. "No, Castle. This building is set to be demolished this afternoon. Even if someone _does_ notice the partial collapse, they won't dig in to find us; no one is supposed to be here. It'll probably just come down an hour or two sooner because everyone _knows_ it's a danger, and they're destroying it anyways. We have about two hours at the most."

"And you didn't have the good sense to bring a cell phone with you?"

"You broke it, remember?" Castle reddened.

"Sorry about that. I've been meaning to buy you a new one…"

"Don't worry about it. What about your phone? If you had it, you'd have called half the country by now."

"Left it in the car," he admitted. "You always yell at me for having it and taking pictures at crime scenes; so this time I left it."

"Right," she sighed. "And this is why I want to tell you everything."

"That seems sort of intimate, to share everything with the guy that drives you nuts, doesn't it?" Kate turned her head to look up at him.

"What would Nikki Heat do?" she asked. Castle's eyebrows shot up.

"Oh…" slowly, he started to lean down towards her lips, closing his eyes…

"Beckett?" His head shot up as a muffled voice carried from the other side of the rubble. "Castle?"

"Esposito," Kate identified weakly.

"Brilliant." Easing gently out from under her, Castle went to stand by the collapsed wall, shouting, "Esposito! Hey! We're here, we're sealed in!" He heard the very faint sound of footsteps, and then a much cleared knocking noise.

"Castle, is that you?" Ryan's voice leaked through. Rick grinned.

"Yeah, it's me. What took you so long?"

"Would you believe we got hung up in traffic?"

Castle laughed in disbelief. "Haven't you cops ever heard of speeding?"

"Yeah, it's been mentioned once or twice," Esposito said. "Is Beckett in there with you?"

"Yep! She's hurt though; she got all torn up when a window shattered. She's gonna need medical attention."

"We've got EMT's on their way here as we speak," Ryan assured him. "When you guys never checked in we came right over – we used the GPS in your phone to find the car, Castle. Once we saw the state of the building we called for medical assistance and some drills. We'll have you guys out of there in no time!"

"Awesome, great! You guys are awesome; you are _definitely_ getting a shout-out in my next book!"

"Alright"! He heard the sound of his friends high-fiving. Rick grinned and shook his head, then turned to give Beckett a thumbs-up. Kate's lips quirked up, and she raised a shaking hand to return the gesture.

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Two hours and a lot of careful drilling later, Beckett and Castle were safely extracted from the building and on an ambulance headed for the hospital to be checked out. Ryan and Esposito, once they had been sure their friends were safe, had gone off in pursuit of the guy who had done this to them.

Rick smiled at Beckett from his seat at the side of the ambulance. Bring the more severely injured of the two she was on the stretcher, but she was still awake.

"So that was pretty exciting, huh?" Rick asked, batting an EMT's hands away. "And you were scared that we were gonna die." Kate snorted, submitting her arm to another EMT for bandaging.

"Yeah, right. You were the one freaking out when you thought I was gonna die."

"Me? Then what was all that fatalistic "dying Kate Beckett baring her soul" stuff?" Beckett raised an eyebrow, her half-lidded eyes glinting.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Lies!" Castle pointed an accusing finger at her. "You said that Nikki Heat was just like you, and that you were a huge fan! We were about to _kiss_ when Esposito and Ryan showed up!"

"I don't remember any of this; you must have been hallucinating," she insisted, sounding sleepy but smug. "All I said was that you need to relax."

"Alright, _you_ are a liar! We were having a lovely, romantic, intimate moment amidst a time of great peril, and you _were_ coming clean!"

"You're crazy," Beckett mumbled with a smile as her eyes closed. "Now relax and let them check you out." Castle reluctantly let the EMT's do their work, shaking his head tensely.

"Oh, this is _not_ over," he warned Kate. Her eyes flickered opened for a second, and she winked at him.

"Bring it on."

"Bring it on? Bring it – It is _so _on!"

_fin._

_A/N: This is definitely one of my favorites. I love peril and brink-of-death stuff. (:_


	12. SelfLove

**12. Castle:** _Self-Love_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Summary: In which Kate gives an insecure Alexis some familiar advice…_

_Prompt: Self-love_

_Author's Notes: This is a tag to my earlier fic "Beauty" (chapter 2, I think?). I liked the concept of this one, a lot; but it didn't write itself out well. I suppose they can't all be gems, but I wish I could have written this one better…ah, well. We try, we fail, we learn, eh?_

_Oh! And, seeing what day this is…Happy New Years! :D_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Castle had signed on to another book deal. Once again, Nikki Heat's success had left readers clamoring for more, and the author was ready to comply whole-heartedly. And as with every new turn in his writing career, he marked it with an epic part.

Beckett leaned against the bar with a small smile, taking little sips of her drink. She's gotten used to attending her friend's high-society parties, and after the initial shock of entering, she was even coming to enjoy them.

"Detective! Fancy meeting you here!" And speak of the devil.

"Castle, what a surprise," she smirked. "At your own party, I never would have guessed." She smirked, shifting as he ordered his drink so that she faced him. "What, you're not getting drunk on all the praises?"

"No, I'm enjoying it; just topping off the excitement." He raised his glass in a mock toast, and then downed it. "Hey, Kate, listen; can you do me a favor?" Beckett rolled her eyes.

"No, Castle, I will not pose nude for the cover of the next Nikki Heat book."

"Oh, and I was hoping to see your modeling abilities," he complained with a pout.

"Aw, tough luck."

"Maybe next time." Castle took a swig at his new drink. "Actually, I was wondering if you would talk to Alexis for me."

"Alexis?" Kate frowned. "Is she okay?"

"Oh yeah, she's fine. I think/" Castle nodded towards a table across the room. "She's just been moping there for half the night, which is really unlike her. I can't get a word out of her." Kate followed his gaze, and saw Martha and Alexis sitting at a table together towards the back of the room. She realized that Castle wasn't exaggerating; it was a great thing indeed for Martha Rodgers to stay willingly in the back of the room when the party was out front. Though the look on her face as she swallowed a mouthful of wine was less than thrilled. Kate turned back to Castle.

"Your mother can't get it out of her, either?"

"I don't know what's going on. But Alexis likes you; maybe you'll have better luck getting through to her."

Kate nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I'll give it a shot," she promised, leaving her glass on the counter and crossing the room. She eased down into the seat next to Alexis, who looked up immediately. Martha raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"Hey," Kate said softly. "Do you mind if I sit here?" Alexis shrugged.

"Sure, whatever…" She leaned her elbows on the table and sighed. Beckett paused, for a moment observing. She thought that she recognized Alexis's behavior, but she wanted to be more certain.

"Are you okay?" she asked finally, deciding on a more direct approach. Alexis looked up again.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know; maybe because I can see that you're miserable, and that's not the Alexis that I know. Is this about a boy?" The girl's eyes widened.

"How did you know?"

"Hey, I was your age once; a lot more recently than your grandma, too. No offence." Martha nodded.

"None taken, darling."

"Oh, gosh, is this going to be one of those "I was your age once and I get it, now grow up" speeches?" Alexis demanded with uncharacteristic vehemence. "Because honestly? That's the last thing I want from you."

"Tell me what happened," Kate's voice was quiet and firm, but not rude, and Alexis obeyed.

"He was supposed to be here tonight," she said, "but he blew me off for some popular girl who wanted to go shopping. Can you believe that? He sees one pretty girl, and he forgets all about me."

"Hey!" Kate interrupted more sharply than she intended, and softened her voice before she continued. "None of that now."

"What?"

"That "some pretty girl" thing. I know that's what you think, but it's a lie. He didn't blow you off because he doesn't think you're pretty enough; he's a jerk who doesn't deserve you. Let me have five minutes with him in interrogation and I'll prove it."

Alexis laughed, but it lasted only a moment.

"But what if it _is_ because I'm not pretty enough? What if I'm just a spoiled, rich, ugly nerd?"

"Sweetie, you're not spoiled."

"But I _am_ a geek."

Kate sighed and glanced across the table at Martha, who smiled slightly. She turned back to Alexis.

"A very wise woman once told me that your heart is what makes you beautiful, not your body. And Alexis, you have a wonderful heart." She squeezed her shoulders. "And I'm sure that there's at _least_ a dozen guys here dying to prove me right on this. IF you walk out there smiling and confident, no one will remember that you're the same lonely, mopey girl who was just sitting in the corner."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. But if you don't trust my opinion, try it out, out there." She gestured vaguely at the party guests. "Like yourself, and I guarantee that they'll like you."

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: Definitely not my favorite; I didn't end it well, and I did one of the stupid little things I despise to write…stupid lifegoal…:p Maybe you like it better than me? O:)_


	13. Kisses

**13. Castle:** _Kisses_

_Prompt: kisses_

_by: jewel of athos_

_Summary: In which Castle is ready to walk away…_

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of it's characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: Hm…I could have ended this one a bit better, but I like it. I was writing it based on an image in my head of the street and the rain, rather than anything more substantial…I think it's set somewhere late season 2-ish, but before Demming. Or it's a few eps into season 3. Depends on your mood, haha ;). _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

"You idiot!" Kate shouted at Castle's retreating back. He trudged forward, shoulders hunched against the wind and rain. "After all we've done, after how far we've come together, you're just going to give up now and walk away?"

Castle turned back to face her. "Oh, so suddenly now you want me to stay? Funny, I thought that these past few years were spent trying to get rid of me! Why do you want me back now?"

"Castle, you can't just walk away from this; not when we are so close to figuring things out!"

"You solved murders long before I ruined your life; you'll do just fine without me."

"No, I won't. I need your help."

"I'm a distraction, Kate. I'm a liability whenever you're on the field. Just today, you almost died! I'm not going to do that to you again."

"It's not like you pulled the trigger on that gun."

"It doesn't matter."

"Oh, yeah. You saving my life doesn't matter. There's one for your ego. Here's another; what about Nikki Heat? Are you going to abandon your readers because you got a little freaked today?" Kate followed him out into the rain. "Are you going to abandon everything because _I_ made a mistake?" She met him in the middle of the sidewalk, and stood toe to toe with him, still shouting. "Everything was my fault, and you're still just going to walk away from this?"

"Your life isn't worth a book deal or a couple of kicked off fans, Kate! I'm not going to take that risk."

Kate grabbed his jacked. "I am willing to risk everything for you –" Her words were cut off as his mouth covered hers, his hands pulling her face close. She tensed. A moment later, Castle released her, breathing hard.

"What was that?" she gasped.

"That's what would have happened in a Nikki Heat book," he said, a touch of mischief coloring his tone. Kate's forehead creased, and the raindrops felt like ice on her burning cheeks.

"Does that mean you're staying?"

Castle shook his head. "No. No, it does not."

"And there's nothing I can do to convince you?"

"No, I don't think so."

Kate nodded thoughtfully. "Huh," she said, before pulling him down close and crushing her lips against his. Castle kissed back stronger. The traffic on the road and the freezing rain faded away, until she was aware of nothing else.

Finally, slowly, she dragged her lips away from his, and looked up into his eyes.

"What was that?" he asked breathlessly.

Her lips quirked. "Isn't that what Nikki Heat would do to convince Rook to stay?" He nodded mutely. "I figured it was worth a shot. So now what do you think?"

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*


	14. Frustration

**14. Castle:** _Frustration_

_Prompt: frustration_

_by: jewel of athos _

_Summary: In which the betting in Castle's house reaches new levels…_

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of it's characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: I wrote this one a while ago, so I don't remember quite what I was thinking at the time. But it definitely takes place after Boom!, and Kate still doesn't have an apartment._

_Special thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story…you guys are INCREDIBLE, and I couldn't do it without you!_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Castle stared at his opponent, his blue eyes narrowed and his jaw set. It was a dangerous game that he played; but it was not merely talent or strategy that mattered here. No, the real secret was intimidation. And Richard Castle had that one down to an art.

"Your move," he whispered, nodding. He watched her smile, but it didn't unnerve him; she had no chance. –

"Checkmate!" Alexis declared triumphantly, knocking one of his pieces off the board. "I win."

"Hey, that's not fair!"

"Sure it is. That's three for me, Dad," she grinned. "And how many have you won today?"

Castle groaned and ruffled his daughter's hair. "Alright kiddo, you win. That means that _you_ get to make the ice cream sundaes tonight."

"With pleasure." Alexis bounced off to the kitchen, and Kate wandered into the room. Castle hid a smile. When he'd told her that she could crash at his place, he hadn't realized that she would sleep for over twenty-four hours. Their last case had really drained her.

"Hey," she said, sliding over on the couch so that she could sit down. "Feeling better?"

Kate nodded. "Yeah, a lot better. Thank you."

"You certainly slept long enough," he teased. She frowned at him.

"What are you talking about? We got back here at seven-thirty, and it's only like, eleven?"

"Yeah, that was seven-thirty _Saturday_ night. This is Sunday."

"Liar," she accused.

"Nope!" Alexis called from the kitchen. "You've been here since last night." Beckett promptly turned and smacked Castle in the arm.

"Ow!" He pulled away. "What was that for?"

"You let me sleep here for over a day? What are you _nuts_?"

"What? You were tired! Besides, I kind of got your apartment blown up a month ago, remember?"

"I have my job to worry about! Not to mention my reputation… Oh, gosh, I can't believe you didn't wake me up this morning!"

"But you look so peaceful when you're sleeping."

Kate narrowed her eyes. "I hate you," she muttered.

Castle smiled. "Frustrating, isn't it?"

Kate raised an eyebrow, then glanced down at the chessboard.

"I'll play you," she challenged.

"Play for what?"

"Revenge. Loser…"

"Shaves their head?" Castle suggested helpfully.

"No. I'm not gonna tell you what you get when you lose; not until I get to subject you to it."

"Oh, you think you're going to win, do you?" he scoffed, helping her reset the pieces. "Well I think you're going to be in for a big surprise, little missy. And just so you know, when I win, you _are_ shaving your head."

"Oh, we'll see about that." Kate slammed her last piece down firmly. "You go first."

"Oh, but I wouldn't want to be accused of having an unfair advantage when I win, Detective. You are a bit of a sore loser."

"Oh, it's on now! Make your move, Castle."

Smiling, the author complied. "Let the games begin."

_fin. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: I love it when they bet. (:_


	15. Pressure

**15. Castle:** _Pressure_

_Prompt: pressure_

_by: jewel of athos _

_Summary: In which Ryan and Esposito prepare to rescue the rest of their team. Tag to chapter 11. _

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of it's characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: Alright, so not my favorite. I used this one to experiment with the boys a little bit. Just a little blurb about the boys. (:_

_Special thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story…you guys are INCREDIBLE, and I couldn't do it without you!_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Esposito and Ryan strapped on Kevlar vests over their clothes, keeping a wary eye on the building that they needed to enter. The Chief stood beside them, giving orders to the other cops who were canvassing the area around them. Not taking his eyes off of the building, Ryan tapped his shoulder.

"So let me get this straight," he said. "We have to go in there, and search the entire building for Beckett and Castle?"

"And we have to find them and get them out within the next fifteen minutes and without collapsing the rest of the thing on top of them and around us?" Esposito finished. The Chief nodded.

"Yup. That's about it."

The detectives shared a glance.

"No pressure or anything though, right?" Ryan muttered.

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: A little bit short for my taste, but this prompt didn't like me. And once again, my darn goal not to change them after I've finished them…Haha why do I make these sorts of my goals for myself?_


	16. Absurd

**16. Castle:** _Absurd_

_Prompt: absurd_

_by: jewel of athos _

_Summary: In which Martha acquires a hideous dress… _

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of it's characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: Another little silly one; but I have fun writing for Martha and her flamboyance, and it had been a while. ;)_

_Sorry that this has nothing to do with tonight's ep (which was EPIC by the way!); I haven't yet had a chance to get out my gut reactions. I will soon though!_

_Special thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story…you guys are INCREDIBLE, and I couldn't do it without you!_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Rick watched his mother spin around in the center of the room, modeling one of the ugliest dresses that he had ever seen. He felt like he was going to have a seizure just looking at it. It had probably belonged to a crazy grandmother in the seventies. It had an odd paisley print done in faded yellow and a sickly green, and was crafted from probably hundreds of ruffles.

"Well?" Martha asked expectantly. "What do you think?"

Castle sighed. "It's atrocious," he informed her. "I hate it. Why would any costume designer would ever create – let alone give away – something as awful as this? Please, tell me, because honestly it's just beyond my ability to understand."

"Oh, come now, Richard. It's for my latest play!"

"Yes, and what character were you cast as? Ugly, bright, and crazy?"

"It's _art_!"

"It's _absurd_ iswhat it is!"

"Hmph! See if I help you promote _your_ next book!" Flipping a scarf over her shoulder, Martha left with a huff in a cloud of dizzying paisley.

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: I love Martha, sooo much; but I like playing on the wilder, artistic side of her (:. _


	17. Forbidden

**17. Castle:**_ Forbidden _

_Prompt: forbidden_

_by: jewel of athos _

_Summary: In which dinner guests are late, and Castle is forbidden to touch the mouthwatering Christmas turkey…_

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of its characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: I wrote this one…right before Christmas I believe. The idea was to get the rest of the fics typed up in time that I could post this one on Christmas Eve or something…but I ended up getting sick for Christmas, and now this one is way out of season. But since I sort of missed Christmas, I'll say that it still counts ;). So have a Very Merry (Belated!) Christmas! :D_

_Special thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story…you guys are INCREDIBLE, and I couldn't do it without you!_

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Rick stared with unabashed longing at the turkey that sat ready on the table amid a Christmas feast. He could feel his mouth watering; he wanted that thing. He couldn't remember a time when a bird had ever looked so delicious before; and the _smell_! If he could just have one tiny bite…

"Ah!" Martha rapped his fingers sharply with a hot cooking spook, and he pulled his hand back with a frown.

"Mother!"

"You _know_ what Alexis said, darling; not a taste until everyone arrives. If there is one single drip of gravy out of place…"

"I know, I know. She'll have my head. But mother, you didn't have to hit me!"

"Well how else was I supposed to protect the food? If I simply said "no", you would have laughed at me and kept going."

"Yes; but you would have set a memorable example for me about how to avoid drugs."

Martha rolled her eyes." You are incorrigible tonight, aren't you?"

"I know."

"Oh! Wipe that silly smirk off your face before the guests arrive, Richard. It's almost three, they should be here any minute. Alexis, dear! Come on downstairs, the company should be arriving soon!" Castle dipped a finger into the cranberry sauce while her back was turned, and licked it off quickly. He had his chin balanced on his fist, looking innocent, by the time his mother turned back. "Maybe _she_ can keep you from devouring that dinner pre-maturely," she sniffed.

"Yes, that she might. But think of what a testimony it would be to your and Alexis's cooking skills if I _did_ devour it!" He turned as his daughter made it down the stairs. "Honey! You look beautiful!"

With a grin, Alexis spun around, showing off her green and white dress.

"Thanks," she said, coming over to peck him on the cheek. "And Dad, thank you _so_ much for buying it for me. I feel so pretty!"

"Well that you are darling!" Martha said, kissing the top of Alexis's head. "Not that you need a dress to prove it."

"Thanks, Gram. So, it's about three; everyone should be getting here pretty soon. Are you two ready? You didn't touch the food, did you?" She looked pointedly at her father.

"I kept him away," Martha promised, as Rick wiped a drop of cranberry juice off the counter.

"You know, it's really nice that you wanted to do this," he said to his daughter.

She smiled. "Come on, after all that you've been through with them? It's the least I could do. Sort of a "Thanks for not letting my crazy dad get killed in the field" meal/"

"Whoa, hey! Crazy?"

Alexis laughed. "Yup."

"Guilty as charged."

There was a knock on the door, and Alexis spun around. "That must be them." 

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go greet your guests."

"Okay." Alexis took a deep breath, and wiped her hands on her skirt. Then she smiled, and opened the door. "Hi! Merry Christmas!" One by one, she greeted Kate and the Chief and the rest of her father's friends from the Twelfth, along with the Chief's family, Kate's father, and Ryan's girlfriend Jenny. The apartment was soon filled with happy, noisy people who laughed and exchanged gifts and teasing. Castle waited until everybody was occupied to try again for the table.

Alexis's hand caught his. "Not yet," she warned, a huge grin on her face.

Castle pouted at her. "Oh, come on, just one bite! Please?"

"No! But if it'll make you feel better, you can sneak a cookie out of the kitchen."

"Deal!" His face lit up, and Alexis giggled.

"Merry Christmas, Dad."

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: I enjoyed this one. (:_


	18. Honesty

**18. Castle:** _Honesty_

_Prompt: honesty _

_by: jewel of athos _

_Summary: A tiny little tag to the episode "Nikki Heat"…_

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of its characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: This one was the first thing that I wrote after I saw the episode. Ryan and Jenny's sub-plot was adorable, and I wanted to try something a little bit different than I have with the rest of these fics. _

_Thank you to everyone who has read or reviewed or favorited this story so far! You guys mean the world to me (:. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

"_Jennifer Scott Duffy O'Mally… will you make me the happiest man in the world right now and become my wife?" _

Honest. In the end, there's only two things that a relationship boils down to. Love and honesty. I love you, I don't love you; I'm cheating or I'm not. In the end, there are very few words that describe the demands of a relationship better than that.

Kevin was honest with me. Well, granted, I didn't think that he was being honest, and we both stumbled along the way; but in the end, he was completely and brutally honest with me. He didn't make excuses so that he could ask me at the time he planned – God only knows how much money he spent renting that silly helicopter – and he didn't let it go and pretend like it never happened. Right there, in that police station and in front of everybody, he got down on one knee and told me that he loved me. And he told me, too, in not so many words, that he is willing to do _anything_ for me.

It's still a little weird to think that I got engaged in a police station surrounded by cops. But if you love someone, if you _really_ love someone, then it doesn't matter where you are. And believe me, when he took that ring out, location was the last thing on my mind.

He proposed in a police station, and we celebrated that night with honeymilk. Our special drink. Not the most orthodox New York engagement or couple. But when it comes down to it, I couldn't ask for anyone better than him.

_fin_.

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: Alright, so I'm hopelessly cheesy. _


	19. Grace

**19. Castle:** _Grace_

_Prompt: grace_

_by: jewel of athos _

_Summary: Alexis muses on her grandmother, on and off-stage…_

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of its characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: I know it's rather short, but I wanted to try something from Alexis's point of view, involving Martha. I love their relationship, and I wanted to get into how Alexis sees her grandma a little bit. _

_Thank you to everyone who has read or reviewed or favorited this story so far! You guys mean the world to me (:. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

I have to admit, I love watching my grandmother onstage.

I mean, sure, I see her all the time – and she's _dramatic _all the time. But that's something that I also see in my dad, and my friends, and even the detectives Dad works with. Drama is nothing new to me. But to see Gram in costume and standing onstage playing to the crowd like she's been waiting all of her life for _this show_… There's nothing like it.

There's something different about her when she acts, definitely. She's not just being dramatic or flamboyant; if that's all it took to be an actor, then there would be no one left in the audience. But it's like she's stepping into another skin. A graceful skin that I recognize, but don't quite know. Sometimes it makes me sad, but for the most part I find it exciting. There's a love of mysteries that runs in my blood; I always thought that it started with my dad, but now I'm wondering if it didn't maybe come through Gram first. I mean, look at the parts of herself that she manages to pull out of life into her roles; and what she takes back into life with her from them.

I guess I'll always admire the mysteries and grace that make up my Gram.

_fin._


	20. Laughter

**20. Castle:** _Laughter_

_Prompt: laughter_

_by: jewel of athos _

_Summary: Alexis joins in with her family and Beckett for ladies (and Castle) poker night…_

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of its characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: This one was fun for me. I love the poker scenes and the betting, and I wanted the chance to show Kate's relationship with Castle's family growing a bit._

_Thank you to everyone who has read or reviewed or favorited this story so far! You guys mean the world to me (:. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

Alexis woke up around midnight to the sound of laughter. She frowned when she read the glowing numbers on the clock, confused. Her dad wasn't supposed to have anyone over that she knew of, and his friends usually weren't that loud. He made sure of that when he knew she was sleeping. What in the world was going on down there?

Unable to fall back to sleep, she slipped on a robe and padded down the stairs, blinking against the light. She was surprised to find her father and her grandmother sitting at his little poker table along with Detective Beckett, playing cars and laughing. There was a fair-sized pot in the middle of the table – Alexis guessed that they had been playing for a while. She paused at the bottom of the stairs.

"Dad?" He looked up from his cards in surprise. "What's going on?" 

"Alexis! What are you still doing up, honey?"

"I heard you guys laughing."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Castle laid his cards on the table and motioned her over for a hug. "I didn't realize we were getting so loud."

"It's alright," Alexis covered a yawn with her hand. "So what are you all doing?"

"Girl's poker night," Martha explained. Alexis frowned, glancing at her father.

"Then why…?"

"We told you r dad he could join in," Beckett joked with a smirk.

"Dad?"

Castle smiled at his daughter. "I was invited. They _like_ being beaten by me is what it is."

Beckett snorted. "Yeah, _that's_ why."

"You know, didn't I jinx you like, ten minutes ago, Kate?"

She raised an eyebrow. "I'll buy you a soda."

"So kiddo," Martha looked up at Alexis, "you want in? There's a new pair of earrings in it for you if you beat your dad!"

"But Gram, it's a school night. And don't you have a matinee performance tomorrow or something?"

"Eh, the late night takes the edge off," Martha waved a hand. "Your father and Kate are planning to quit soon anyways. Working folk and all. Come on, live a little! Play a hand with us."

"Well…"

"Oh, please!" Rick begged. "I could use a few less days of dish-duty on my schedule."

"What do you say?" Beckett asked grinning. "You want to make him eat those words?" Finally, Alexis gave in, laughing.

"You bet!" She took a seat, and Martha dealt her in. "Get ready to lose."

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: So yeah, this one was sort of fun (:. _


	21. Confidence

**21. Castle:** _Confidence_

_prompt: confidence_

_by: domina tempore (formerly "jewel of athos")_

_Summary: Kate and Rick's mental breakdowns of The Moment leading up to the kiss in "Knockdown". Tag for the ep, spoilers obviously. _

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of its characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: I had sort of a hard time with this one. You would think that the prompt would be fairly easy, in terms of Castle's specific characters… But I've got writer's block. I think it turned out alright, though. _

_Please forgive the abnormal formatting. I wanted to do something different here, so Kate's POV is in italics, and Castle's is not. (:_

_Thank you to everyone who has read or reviewed or favorited this story so far! You guys mean the world to me (:. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*.

"_I'm open for dumb ideas here," Kate muttered. She glanced back at Castle, who wore a look of determination that was oddly comforting._

"Good, 'cause I've got one…" As he explained his idea, he felt her confidence in him waver, and for a moment he himself was nearly undone by the overwhelming stupidity of the plan. But he realized somewhere in the middle of his babbling that her trust in _him_ never changed, even if his idea was nuts. The realization _at that moment_ gave him the confidence to finish out strong. He waited an anxious few seconds for her answer, but finally she gave him a nod. _Let's do it._

_Climbing out of that car and stumbling drunkenly towards a killer's hideaway was pretty far up on her list of "stupidest things that I have ever done"; but she was willing to do anything at this point to find her friends and avenge her mother. The beefy guy guarding the door, however, was interested in them, and not in an amused, half-bored sort of way. This was not going to end well. "He's not buying it, Castle." _

He knew the huge risk that they were taking, and he could see that their act wasn't selling. They needed something drastic… He saw Kate reaching for her gun, and he knocked her hand away. The movement was premature, and it would end in a shooting; and then they all could die. To cover his action, he grabbed her face, holding he gaze before doing something that he had always wanted to do. He felt her tense under his hands as he kissed her.

_One kiss wasn't enough. She knew that as soon as they broke apart. They weren't fooling anybody, but even if they were, once kiss was not nearly enough to satisfy her. She felt herself falling, falling back into him, and her hands were trembling. But the reassuring pressure of Castle's lips against hers filled her with strength, and she poured out her soul in that moment without a shadow of a doubt._

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: I'm not completely sure that I should have left it like that…but any farther and I would have lost the moment I was aiming for to that epic pistol whipping, haha. Thoughts? (:0_


	22. Happiness

**22. Castle:** _Happiness_

_prompt: happiness_

_by: domina tempore (formerly "jewel of athos")_

_Summary: What drives Richard Castle…_

_Disclaimer: Castle and all of its characters and locations belong to their respective owners. I own only my original storylines. No copyright infringement intended!_

_Author's Note: I wasn't sure to make this one into something silly and fun, or something slightly more heartfelt. In the end… Well, in the end, it turned into this. _

_Thank you to everyone who has read or reviewed or favorited this story so far! You guys mean the world to me (:. _

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

The key to Richard Castle's happiness was people.

He knew what the tabloids said, and what he allowed them to go on thinking. He was quite aware that while he was seen as a loving father to Alexis, they saw him as a rich pretty-boy whose primary source of joy was women and money and getting into trouble.

He didn't bother to correct them – trying to change the minds of the press was a sure way to make them hang on to their ideas even more – but they could not have been more wrong. Granted, those things were a large part of his life and success, and he enjoyed them; but he was realizing more and more that he could live without them, if he _had_ to, and still be perfectly happy.

It was the people in Castle's life that made the difference.

Alexis and Martha, Kate, everyone down at the Twelfth; those were the reasons he got up in the morning. Life without his daughter would hardly be worth living, and everything else followed that along. He certainly wouldn't have _had_ a life without Martha; and he would have lost it many times over if it had not been for Kate. And almost losing most of them at one point or another had only served to further his personal assurance that he would be nothing without them. Sure, his novels would still sell, he would still be rich and famous; but he would be empty.

He would never outright admit it, of course – not to anyone but Alexis and _maybe_ Kate, one day – but he was fully prepared to give up anything and everything that he had for them, in a heartbeat. Because it wasn't the money that was important, and it wasn't the fame. It was his family, his friends, and their happiness. 

He would give his life for their continued happiness.

_fin._

*~_~**o**0**o**~_~*

_A/N: Alright, so not my favorite. I definitely could have expressed this better… So something to work on, right? ;) _


End file.
